A Cohort Analysis on the Career Life Cycles of Players of the LPGA of Japan Tour

The purpose of this study is to investigate the patterns of professional career paths of the players of the Ladies Professional Golf Association of Japan (JLPGA) Tour. Using the athletes’ professional career life cycle model as the theoretical framework, this study will analyze the career development of elite players of the JLPGA from their rookie year to the point of retirement. The year of each JLPGA tournament win by selected players will be examined for the players’ entire careers. The players’ money ranking for each year of their careers is also analyzed to determine the stages of the players’ career life cycles. The tournament win span, i.e., the number of years between a player’s first and last JLPGA tournament win, will be computed. The career life cycles of players of different cohorts will be compared to determine whether or not there was any transformation in the structure of career stages of the players over time. The career development patterns of Japanese-born players will be compared with those of the international players of the JLPGA.